KENDRAPARA: It has been two decades since the martyrdom of Army jawan Sachitananda Mallick on the heights of Kargil in 1999, but neither his wife nor his family have received the compensation money, thanks to a protracted dispute.
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Wife Nibedita is locked in a legal battle with her in-laws for the around Rs 30 lakh which was given by the Government and a few private organisations. Sachitananda of Kandiahat village was posted in the Indian Army’s 12th battalion of the Mahar Regiment when he died fighting Pakistani soldiers in Drass sector on June 28, 1999.
Following the jawan’s death, relationship between Nibedita and her in-laws soured. His mother Malati Mallick filed a civil suit in a Kendrapara court in 1999 to claim her share of the compensation.
Malati died around six months back while her husband and Nibedita’s father-in-law Upendra Mallick had passed away two years back.
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Nibedita claimed to have gone through severe financial hardship since the court restrained her from withdrawing the money. Nonetheless, she has raised her son Soumyaranjan who is 23-years now.
The mother and son has even visited Drass last year. “It was a proud moment for us. We spent on our own to visit Drass sector despite the financial stress. I hope the case ends soon,” she said.
On the other hand, Sachitananda’s elder brother Nimai said his parents spent a lot on the legal battle. “But they died without getting justice. After the death of my parents, the case has no meaning.
I lost my brother in the Kargil war and feel proud of his sacrifice for the country,” he said.
President of district ex-servicemen’s association Mahesh Kar said, every year on July 26, the supreme sacrifice of the soldiers who were martyred on the heights of Kargil, including 11 from Odisha is remembered.
But parents of several martyrs are still engaged in legal battles with their daughter-in-laws for their share of the compensation amount, he said.